Thomas County cat. [volume] (Colby, Kan.) 1885-1891, 1887-12-15
LIFE IN THE HAREM.
Aistaken Ideas OF the Western World ~
to an Eastern Instttution.

4
In theory the Moslem classes his
Tomenkind with the holy of holies of
Mecca The innermost shrine of his
emplc and the rooms with latticed
windows are both called by tie same
lame OF Harem or Sacred" The
apartment IS harem and the ladies
who live in it are harem for all but the
ord and master. He may enter at will,
out generally announces his coming be-
;orehand, SO that he may not run the
'lsk OF meeting feminine visitors who
are probably the wives of his friends.
In well regulated houses the husband
ntrudes only at fixed hours, per-
haps Tor short time after midday pray
sr. and does not else favor his harem till
ne retires to rest. Home life. such as
we understand it, can scarcely be said
10 exist for the Mohammedan. The
man lives in and at his work outside.
and the woman among her slaves and
friends in the harcm. The most inter-
esting view of the home life of the
harem is when it is considered as
the cradle in which Eastern
manhood is reared. Schools of
any kind are few and meagerly
patronized, and boarding schools are
unknown. A few boys are sent to
Paris. Constantinople or Syria to be
educated, but the majority grow up
among slave girls and servants, seeing
"A great deal which they ought not to
see. and learning very little of what
they should. 1t is small wonder, then,
that the better moral qualities. if any
were ever Unborn, are rapidly obliter-
ated, and the boy grows up to the
man saturated with vice and eifemi-
macy. The women occupants of the
harem are the wife or wives and the
female slaves. Perhaps on no subject
does greater misconception prevail
than on this harem slavery. The field.
however, is too wide a one to be
touched more than incidentally.
The name of slave rs app led to the
Georgian or Circassian girl is a mis-
homer She occupies more the posi-
ton of a friend. or mt least of a lady s
companion, if she does not. as is Otter
the case. become an adopted daughter
of the house. She is well and some
times extensively dressed. and shares
the small amusements of her mistress
at the theater, the mOOlid or the prom
do 1, 1.,Ix
fly in passion and soundly box the
girls ears or pull out handful of
hair; but a reconciliat. on soon takes
place, and is usually cemcnted with :,
present of jewelry or a new dress.
The principal diversions of harem
life consist in the visits of friends and
of a pcrnicious class of trading women.
who hawk about articles of dress and
gewgaws from one house to another,
retailing the latest gossip and scandal
with their wares. and assisting the
ladies 10 get into all manner of scrapcs.
Wise women, who tell fortunes by
cards and lamentations, are also in
great demand, and their Vaccinations
are. as rule, believed in by the ladies
with much the same delightful and
blind confidence rs is given by farmers
daughters to the mysterious prophecies
# the gypsies. Now and then condign
punishment awaits these hays, as in
the case of the notorious Ayeska, who.
several years ago. was called for one
night, hustled into carriage under
pretense of Wis ting "A great harcm, and
has never since been heard of. But,
as rule, their sorceries. evil eyes and
charms are perfectly harmless, and
when there is nothing better 10 do
they are called in to beguilc the heavy
hours. Nor must the men singers lie
left out in the catalogue of delights Of
the harem-a delight. nevertheless.
which is but sparingly INDUCED in, and
can only be enjoyed to the full when
the harem's lord is away.
A notion seems generally prevalent
in Europe that if only the harem doors
were opened n rush for liberty would
take place. and many are
the sympathies wasted on the supposed
prisoners of the Mohammedan mar
riage tie. In reality. botn men and
women consider their state far SUI
perior to that of Europeans. The man
argues thus: you are slave from
the moment you marry. You can not
go out to lunch or dinner or to your
friends without taking your wife with
you. You can not even leave her
alone tor a few hours without giving
an account of yourself. Such a state
of things would be unbaarable to me.
go where I like and she goes where
she likes. pay my servants to look
after her, and l am sure that she is not
flirting with other men when am not
by her side. You are never sure of
this" etc. This is his line of argu-
ment
The woman says: MY religion for
bids me to look upon other men than
my husband. If changed my religion
perhaps l would like to mix up with
very fellow l came across. but SO long
as / am a Mahommedan 1 detest the